After up-and-down 2025 campaigns, both Brad Binder and Enea Bastianini need to find consistency in 2026.

Binder went without a podium in 2025, while Bastianini managed only a solitary rostrum finish at Barcelona.

For Binder at least, the season trended in a positive direction, with top-10 finishes throughout the second half of the season. But for the rider who took KTM’s first victory in MotoGP over five years ago, consistent top-10s are not the point of competition.

Red Bull KTM Factory Racing boss Aki Ajo says that an increase in the consistency of Binder’s work next year will be the key to further improving his results in 2026.

“For sure, he [Binder] found a lot of consistency,” Ajo told MotoGP.com, “especially for the work, that the results were not as expected in the beginning of the year, but in the second half the results are getting better but especially we need to focus for this: how we are improving in our project and in our work, and measuring this way. 

“Especially for the Fridays and Saturdays that we are much more constant now for Brad’s work and we know, and we believe, that this is the key for the long term to get back more to the front.”

If making work during the race weekends consistent between rounds is the key for Binder in 2026, so it is for Enea Bastianini as well, the Italian working with Binder’s long-time crew chief Andres Madrid next year as Binder’s team welcomes Phil Marron from World Superbike.

“With Enea, I would say that we had ups and downs,” said Ajo, “but, in any case, on his side also we have some highlights. 

“We are looking for more consistency and on his side also we are quite a lot focusing for that, how to generally focus for the weekends and also between the weekends. 

“Let’s say it’s a little bit the same thing as with Brad, focusing for the consistency.”